Loose-leaf book



June 12, 1928. 7 1,673,670

c. A. FINLEY LOOSE LEAF BOOK Filed June 11, 1927 INVENTOR CHARLES A. FINLEY 5 91 722.5 aiz'arncj s Patented June 12, 1928.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES A. FINLEY, OF RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY, ABSIGNOR TO BOORUM &; PEASJE. COMPANY, OF BROOKLYN, NEV] YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

LOOSE-LEAF BOOK.

Application filed June 11, 1927.

This invention relates to loose leaf books and more particularly to books in which the leaf-retaining means are fastened inside the back of a flexible cover. One object of the invention is to provide a book of simple and strong construction. In loose leaf devices of this character it has heretofore been pos sible to pry apart the cover and the leaf-retaining means. According to the present invention an end cap is so assembled with the cover and leaf retaining means that the device is practically indestructible.

The invention will be shown and described embodied in a loose leaf ring book.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the outside of a loose leaf ring book made according to this invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the inside of one end of the book, partially broken away to show how the ring metal is attached to the cover;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view through one end of the back of the book taken on the line 33 of Fig, 2;

Fig. 4 is an end view of the book;

Fig. 5 is avperspective view of the end cap; while i Fig. 6 is a sectional view similar to Fig. 3 of a modified form of assembly, the rings not being shown.

In the device shown in the drawings there is a one piece flexible cover 15 with the leafretaining means fastened inside it. This leafretaining means in aring book is a socalled ring metal comprising the usual sheetcarrying ring halves mounted, on hinge plates 22 gripped at their edges by the flanges 26 of a housing 26, and a cover plate 28 overlying the plates and gripping the flanges of the housing in a usual manner. There are the usual operating thumb pieces 30.

There is a metal back plate 18 lying inside the back of the cover 15 and fastened thereto by glue if desired. Struck up from the back plate 18 are prongs 23 which assist in uniting the cover to the ring metal.

Ring books have heretofore been known in which the leather cover and the metal backplate have been embraced at the top and bottom of the back by end caps which serve to protect the cover and hold the cover and Serial No. 198,126.

back plate together. This construction has long been recognized to have the disadvan tage that the ring metal can be pulled or pried off the cover and it is one of the prin cipal objects of this invention to make a binder which cannot thus be separated either intentionally or unintentionally. For this purpose a novel form of end cap ill is pro-- vided which grips between its outer arm 34- and its inner arm 32 the cover 15, the back plate 18 and the housing 25 of the ring metal. This inner arm of the end cap overlies the housing 25, and projects tovmrd the middle of the back a sufficient distance to overlie theprongs. 23 of the backplate. There is a slot 83 in the arm 32 adapted to register with the prong of the back plate when the end cap is in position, and the housing is similarly slotted. When the binder is assembled this prong 23 is adapted to pass through the housing and the inner arm of the end cap and to be bent down on top of the inner arm of the end cap. It may be noted that the prongs 23 prevent endwise removal or twisting of the end caps and are located at points spaced from the edges of the coven The parts are thus all fastened together in a unitary manner and it would be impossible for anyone to pry the parts apart without first completely disassembling the ring metal. To assist the end cap in maintaining its proper posit-ion the inner arm 32 of the end cap'can, if desired, be made substantially the full width of the space between the flange and the housing and curved similarly to the housing. This will prevent twisting of the end cap with relation to the ring metal and the backplate. As before mentioned, the end cap has an outer arm 3a which is adapted to grip the cover and clamp it against the back plate. hen no other fastening means are employed between the backplate' and the cover, there is a possibility of prying the cover out from under the two end caps by bulging it upwardly at the middle of the back. and, for the purpose of preventing this, the outer arm 34 of the end cap is pointed or made longer at its midpoint where the bulging upward is likely to occur. By shaping the outer arm of the end cap in this manner the possibility of bulging the cover upwardly at the middle and removing it from the rest of the binder is thereby eliminated. In this way security is attained without spoiling the appearance by extending the end caps along the two longitudinal folds of the back of the cover.

It might be pointed out that the cover plate of the ring metal may have turned down ends which effectively close off the ends of the ring metal and bear down on the end cap, thus providing a neat construction preventing access to the interior of the ring metal.

Instead of using prongs struck up out of the base plate to assist in holding the parts together other means such as shown in Fig. 6

may be employed. In this modification a strap 24 is struck down from the rest of the housing 25 and the inner arm 32 of the end cap is threaded between this portion 24 and the rest of the housing. It will be observed that the housing is still embraced by the end cap. To prevent endwise removal of the end cap a catch point 25 is staked down in the housing making an indentation 552 in the end cap.

The neat appearance, foolproof construction. and the simplicity of the device which has been described will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

What I claim is:

1. In a loose leaf binder, a cover, a back plate, and a leaf-retaining means located inside said back plate and cover and having a housing, in combination with an end cap embracing the edge of the cover and the back plate and housing.

2. In a loose leaf binder, a cover, a back plate, and a leaf-retaining means located inside said back plate and cover and having a housing, in combination with an end cap fastened to said back plate embracing the edge of the cover and the back plate and housing.

3. In a loose leaf binder, a cover, a metallic back plate inside said cover, a leaf-retaining means having a housing with a slot therethrough, an end cap adapted to embrace the edge of the cover and the back plate and the housing and having a slot therein adapted to register with the slot in said housing, in combination with a prong struck up from said back plate passing through the slots in said housing and end cap and bent down upon said end cap.

4. A loose leaf ring book having a flexible cover, a back plate inside said cover, a ring metal inside said back plate having a housing and a cover plate gripping the flanges of said housing in combination with end caps embracing said housing, back plate and cover at top and bottom of the back and means spaced from the top and bottom of the back, permanently associating said back plate, housing and end caps together, substantially as and for the purposes described.

5. A loose leaf ring book having a flexible cover, a back plate inside said cover, a ring metal inside said back plate having a housing and a cover plate gripping the flanges of said housing in combination with end caps embracing said housing, back plate and cover at top and bottom of the back, the outer arms of said end caps being pointed at the middle of the back, and means spaced from the top and bottom of the back, permanently associating said back plate, housing and end caps together, substantially as and for the purposes described.

.6. A loose leaf book having a flexible cover, a back plate, a leaf-retaining means located inside said back plate and cover and having a housing with flanges along its edges, in combination with an end cap fastened to said back plate at a distance from the edge of the cover and embracing the edge of the cover andthe back plate and housing, the inner arm of said end cap being substantially the width of the housing at a distance from the edges of the cover, for the purposes described.

7. A loose leaf book having a flexible cover, a back plate inside said cover, hinge plates with ring halves thereon, a housing with flanges gripping said hinge plates, and a plate covering the hinge plates and gripping the edges of the housing, in combination with end caps embracing said cover, back plate and housing at the top and bottom of the back, and prongs on said back plate fastening said housing and end caps together at points spaced from the edges of the cover.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

CHARLES A. FINLEY. 

